A LIFE-CHANGING visit to Borneo to help rear endangered orangutans came about after a Somerville woman was asked to “do something for yourself”. Medical scientist Leonie Butler, of Somerville, said she had experienced the full “wife-mum-career thing” when her own mother suggested she take some time off and do something she really wanted to do. That led Ms Butler to spend most of March enriching the lives of captive orangutans and sun bears at the world renowned Samboja Lestari rescue centre in East Kalimantan. The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation is a 2000 hectare restored rainforest orangutan sanctuary created to provide…
Day: April 24, 2017
A PAIR of wedge-tailed eagles has moved into Pearcedale and, with the birds’ known longevity, they are almost certain to be long term residents. The eagles are living in a specially-constructed aviary at Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park and cannot be released into the wild because of being domesticated while under treatment for injury. The 30-metre aviary is based on a raptor rehabilitation design that is free of any wire and includes slatted wooden sides and a seven-metre high dome with double netting, to ensure the huge birds – Australia’s largest birds of prey – do not injure themselves and…
By Teresa Murphy THE retro brown-brick facade remains and crowds still queue for fish ‘n’ chips at peak holiday times, but much has changed at Balnarring Beach’s general store. Now called Tulum Store, after Balnarring’s original name*, the historic store and cafe was reincarnated in 2016, closing for six months for extensive renovations and reopening for summer. It was a baptism by fire for new owner Cath Haylock, who oversaw the makeover with local tradies, created new menus, hired staff and dealt with the summer chaos – all while being a mum of two young kids. Tulum Store is a…
A MOTORCYCLIST who died after colliding with a minibus on French Island on Sunday 23 April was not wearing a helmet. Leading Senior Constable Lauren McNiece, of Somerville Highway Patrol, said the man, 27, of French Island, was riding east along Tankerton Rd around a left-hand bend when he crashed into a minibus travelling west, 4.20pm. She said speed may have been a factor as the motorcyclist appeared to have been unable to take the bend on the dirt road before running head on into the minibus. He was not wearing a helmet and died at the scene. The driver of…
PLANS to redevelop the former Masters’ site in Mornington into a 4250 square metre supermarket, six retail outlets over 6950 square metres and a 100 square metre cafe, has received strong backing from Mornington Peninsula Shire officers. The application, by Home Investment Consortium Company, will be discussed at the Wednesday 26 April Mornington Shire Council meeting. A report by planning services team leader David McPherson considered the “strategic justification” of a supermarket exceeding the “as-of-right” 1800 square metre floor area; changes to the Mornington Peninsula Planning Scheme by the state government; the impact the use would have upon other activity…
THE not-for-profit club which has been running Devilbend Golf Course for the past 43 years may be sidelined to make way for a commercial manager. Mornington Peninsula Shire officers have told councillors that appointing a manager for the 18-hole golf course in Loders Rd, Moorooduc would create “a reasonable commercial return to council”. The recommendation to advertise for a manager follows a request for renewal of its 21-year lease by the 450-member Devilbend Golf Club. The club has six full time and seven part time staff and last year showed a net operating profit of $71,642 from a turnover of…
PENINSULA LEAGUE KARINGAL champion Michael Burke played his 300th game on Sunday against Frankston YCW. The six-time best and fairest winner, premiership player and league medallist became only the 18th player in MPNFL history to be awarded life membership for 300 games. Burke joined the likes of Guy Stringer, Robert Jackson, Daniel Smith, Gordon Hendry, Mark Hustwaite, Brendan Long and Brett Wright in the elite and prestigious 300 club. Burke has captained and coached Karingal FC and his loyalty has never wavered. The godfather of Karingal FC, Daniel ‘Digger’ Watts, aptly described Burke as the most loyal, honest, humble and…
NEPEAN LEAGUE RED Hill made it two wins on the trot on Saturday when it dominated for much of the afternoon to beat Rosebud at Olympic Park for the first time since 1985. Rosebud led inside the first minute of the match when Keegan Downie goaled but from that moment on, it was all Red Hill. The Hillmen’s dominance from the half back line and blistering pace through the middle of the ground was just too much for the Buds to handle. The inevitable match-up between Red Hill’s Chris Irving and Rosebud’s Greg Bentley did take place from the first…
MR R. T. Picking and family, after spending the summer months in Frankston, have removed to their residence at Glen Huntly. *** THERE was a good attendance at the “Australian” Club dance on Saturday evening last, the financial result of which should add materially to the funds. *** THE Floral Fete in aid of the Church of England funds, was opened in the hall, Frankston, on Friday afternoon, and will continue this afternoon and evening. A meeting of the members of the Frankston Branch of the National Federation will, be held in the Mechanics’ Institute, on Monday next. Members are…
THE old rule that nurses “live in” during their training years ago forged bonds which are still strong today. This was apparent when 35 out of a group of 50 former nurses at the Royal Melbourne Hospital met in Mornington earlier this month for 50-year reunion celebrations. They included an open house at Maureen O’Brien’s home near Fisherman’s Beach, a cocktail lunch at the Royal Hotel the next day and an afternoon tea at Chris Knott’s home in Rye the day after. “Discipline was harsh when we began training in April 1967,” Ms O’Brien recalled. “The hours were long and…
THE Mornington lodge of Freemasons Victoria last week gave $10,000 to help the Luke Batty Foundation’s advocacy for “a government that supports and respects victims of domestic violence, and holds perpetrators accountable”. The donation was accepted at the lodge in Barkly St on Thursday 20 April by Rosie Batty whose son Luke was killed by his father Greg Anderson at cricket practice, on Wednesday 12 February 2014. Since the Luke Batty Foundation’s inception, Ms Batty has continued to be a voice for victims while campaigning for systemic change, by ensuring family and domestic violence remains a priority on the political…
PATIENTS and staff at Peninsula Health’s The Mornington Centre have made a poppy trail for the Mornington Secondary College’s WWI avenue of honour as part of the school’s Anzac Day celebrations. “I think it’s very clever and it’s nice to do something in remembrance of Anzac Day,” said patient Audrey Whelan. Jenny Mann, of Mornington, encouraged patients at the centre to get involved, along with students from local schools and visitors to the store, as she wanted to “do something special” to commemorate Anzac Day. “I wanted to get different members of the community involved so it’s a community poppy…
LEARNING the ropes takes on a new meaning when it’s backed by a court order. For the past 10 years many young offenders have been “sentenced” to teaming up with police to take on the challenges posed by a giant swing and tree top ropes. And the results, according to the Ropes Program organisers at the YMCA’s Camp Manyung, Mt Eliza, is that 90 per cent of the young participants have not reoffended. The program was established under a partnership between Victoria Police, Dandenong Children’s Court, Sport and Recreation Victoria and YMCA Camp Manyung to give first time offenders under…
ALAN Day, pictured, was last week again preparing to join the ranks of veterans being driven around the MCG before the traditional Anzac Day clash between Collingwood and Essendon. It is the second time that he has been invited to be a passenger aboard the cavalcade of cars once reserved for veterans of the Gallipoli landings. However, with survivours of that campaign long since gone, the role has fallen to survivors of other landings. In Mr Day’s case it was Balikpapan on the east coast of Borneo when the Australian Seventh Division struck on 1 July, 1945; he represents all…
IT’s just a hat – a Digger’s slouch hat – but the memories it stirs in Mornington veteran Laurie Hill go back 70 years to the dark days of World War II. Mr Hill, 91, joined the Australian Imperial Forces in 1943 – a month after his 18th birthday – among five of six brothers who enlisted and who all returned home safely. An infantry signaller in the jungles of Bougainville, Papua-New Guinea, he recalls daring escapades, including tying up a Japanese prisoner with signalling wire and tapping into Japanese phone lines to eavesdrop on enemy communications. He fondly recalls…
INFORMATION panels at Red Hill Station Reserve tell the story of the area which has become a hub for families, walkers, and bike and horse riders. The panels were put up by Manton and Stony Creeks Landcare Group and Red Hill Community Association. Historical information came from the Shire’s Bittern – Red Hill Railway Conservation Management Plan 2014 with old photos provided by the Dromana and District Historical Society. The park was opened in January last year after a large number of wilding Monterey pines and woody weeds were removed and the area was revegetated with 2000 indigenous plants. It…
THE Hastings Cricket and Football Social Club is contesting plans by Mornington Peninsula Shire to increase its rent by more than 900 per cent. The club says it “cannot be a signatory” to the proposed lease as it is “a contradiction of the Gambling Act (2003)”. Councillors last month agreed to increase the annual rent for the club’s Marine Pde, Hastings, premises – which also houses gaming machines run by The Hastings Club – from $4000 to $42,234 for the first year of a new 21-year lease (“Rent rise tied to pokies”, The News 11/4/17). The club will then face…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire is expected to approve changes to its planning scheme to allow a two-storey ferry terminal to be built at Sorrento. The terminal is part of a $30 million proposal by Searoad Ferries to extend and update buildings and car parks at both Sorrento and Queenscliff. Under present zonings the transport terminal at Sorrento should be run by Parks Victoria, but the shire is likely to agree to amend the planning scheme and override the prohibition. The proposed terminal will be 9.5 metres high and include a cafe, shop, souvenir shop, “Museum at the Bay” and offices for…